Thread by @george__mack

Here's a list of cool things I learned this week.

THREAD...

1. THE COMPLEXITY OF THE HUMAN BRAIN

This is a map of only 25% of a fruit fly’s cerebral capacity.

Imagine just how complex your inner software is.

H/T - @APompliano

2. NUMERACY IS THE MODERN NUMERACY

A significant amount of modern problems can still be solved by basic numeracy.

5 minutes looking at profit margins or macronutrient intake can save months of wasted effect on non-falsifiable fluff like branding and gym gear.

This is a weakness of mine.

I'm trying to fix it by constantly running the numbers in everyday activities.

In a barbershop where he charges £20 for a hair cut.

It takes him 30 minutes for him to cut hair and works 10 hours a day.

£400 per day at 100% efficiency.

He works 5 days a week and works with 50 weeks a year.

I can see his revenue cap is £100,000 per year.

Now I run the numbers on new hires, rent, taxes, etc

The fundamental backbone of every business is running the numbers but creatives avoid it regularly.

3. NUMERACY DOESN'T STOP AT BUSINESS

Running the numbers has even more practical applications than business.

@waitbutwhy has a great article on calculating how much time you've got left with your parents.

If you've moved out of home, you've probably used up 95% of the time.

Some people call you weird or morbid for thinking about these numbers.

This may be true.

But I suspect that a lot of people with deep regrets at funerals would admit they wish they did it in hindsight.

4. SEARCH ENGINE SKILLS >>>

The most resourceful people I know are beasts with search engines.

The least resourceful people I know never use one.

A lot of answers to modern problems are there waiting for you.

You just need to search around and ask the right question.

This story cracks me up every time.

Who identified the guy behind the largest online black market for drugs the world has ever seen?

The DEA and their experience? No

The FBI and their billions of $$$? No

The tax inspector Googling around? Yes

businessinsider.com/irs-agent-disc…

5. DETAILS, DETAILS, DETAILS

"To assess if a person is a real operator, test if they have attention to detail in something mundane" - @angjiang

The best people I know all have this in common.

This an area I need to improve.

6. FUN PODCAST

This was great from @david_perell

The biggest takeaway is the power of having a high output.

Despite his youth, @9th has been swinging the bat for years.

He was always bound to get a home run at some point.

perell.com/podcast/andy-m…